The New Dumbledore's Army
by MayaPotter97
Summary: Hogwarts, 2030. Everything in the Wizarding world seems peaceful, but what will happen when Dark Forces start rising again? A group of seventeen students will start organizing a new Dumbledore's Army, preparing themselves to battle their worst fears and the darkest forces in the Wizarding world.
1. Prologue: Meet the Characters!

**Prologue: Meet the Characters!**

So here you have a small bio of each character, just so you get familiar with them!

**Sara Wood**: She is a Gryffindor half-blood sixth year. Sara grew up without her father, since he left the family when his wife told him he was a witch, right after Sara's sister's birth. She lives with her mother, Mary, and her sister Lily, who is nine years old at the moment. Sara is a loyal, brave girl who is also quite witty, she barely needs to study to memorize things and also has a good sense of humor. Her closest friends is Tom, whom she happens to fancy too. She is also very good friends with Olivia Preston, Jason Poole and Eleanor Rigby. As NEWT classes, she takes Transfigurations, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Ancient Runes and Herbology. She is also a Prefect.

**Pandora "Cherry" Fletcher**: She is a Gryffindor Muggle-born third year. Pandora is a young, lively girl who is very passionate about everything she does. Pandora loves music and often talks a lot. She lives with her parents, Kya and Jacob, who are both Muggles and very interested on the Wizarding world, and her brother Noah, who is eleven and has been accepted at Hogwarts too. Her best friends are spread around the four Houses: she has her friends Mariah and Lynn in Hufflepuff, Nina in Slytherin and Geena in Ravenclaw. Her electives are Muggle Studies – she thought it'd be easy to take this subject, as she comes from a Muggle family – and Divination.

**Thomas "Tom" Bates**: He is a Gryffindor pure-blood sixth year. Tom had a nice, sweet childhood with his family in a small house in the outskirts of London. Despite coming from a long Wizarding family, Tom's family is considered as blood traitors, as they are fond of Muggle-borns and Muggles. Tom has always been an outgoing, funny boy, who is extremely loyal to his ideas. He is best friends with Jason, a fifth year, and Neil, who is a fellow sixth year. His closest friend, however, is Sara Wood, whom he fancies too. He lives with his parents and his brother Daniel, who is nine, until disaster strikes in the Ministry. As NEWT classes, he takes Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfigurations, Care of Magical Creatures and Charms. He is also Gryffindor keeper and captain.

**Jason "Jay" Poole**: He is a Gryffindor Half-blood fifth year. He is an outgoing, rather cheeky boy, who is often described as slightly arrogant, although that's just because he's quite confident and likes being himself. He's quite popular and quite a prankster, and extremely loud. He lives in Manchester with his parents, Nicholas, who is a Cursebreaker and works for Gringotts, and his mother, Dawn, who is a Muggle architect. He has five sisters and a brother: Olivia, who is twenty and is training to become an Auror, Megan, seventeen and Gryffindor, a close friend of Connor Goldstein, Lily, thirteen and a Gryffindor too, one of Pandora's Housemates, Amelia, ten, Jessica, five, and Samuel, two. This best friends are Daniel and Ben, who are his partners in crime, but over the last year he became quite close with Tom, who is now his best friend, and Louis, who became a close friend of his during their fourth year. He's also quite close to Olivia Preston, since one of his friends, Sara, is really good friends with her, and his old childhood friend Bruno Broughton. His electives are Care of Magical Creatures, Divination and Ancient Runes. He is also one of the Gryffindor beaters.

**Louis Curdy**: He is a Gryffindor Half-blood fifth year. He is a moody and strong boy, quite lively but sometimes shy to strangers, especially girls. He's quite the romantic, and has an unexplainable fear to bunnies. He lives in Cambridge with his parents, Kyle, who is a wizard and works with Tom's dad at the Ministry, and his mother Eve, who is a Muggle author. He also has a seven-year-old brother named Liam, who is very sweet and nice to his older siblings, an eleven-year-old sister named Juno, who is eleven and has been sorted into Gryffindor as well, and a sixteen-year-old sister named Lauren, who is one of the Gryffindor prefects for the sixth year and is really close to Louis. His electives are Divination and Muggle Studies, and his closest friends are Daniel, Ben and Jason. He will attend Quidditch tryouts this year and he will become a Chaser. He will also start fancying Rose once he meets her.

**Amelia "Amy" Bones**: She is a Hufflepuff Half-blood fifth year. She is a sweet and kind girl, who is rather quiet around people she doesn't know but really nice and loyal to her friends. She is an only child and lives with her mother Cynthia, who is a Muggle doctor, and her dad, Charles, who works at the Ministry and is related to Susan Bones. She became friends with Eleanor in the Hogwarts Express and they've been best friends ever since, although she's also befriended Louis and Jason. She fancies Bruno Broughton since their third year, but she's barely talked to him despite knowing he is a good friend of Jason's. Her electives are Divination, Muggle Studies and Care of Magical Creatures.

**Daisy Ann Redwood**: She is a Hufflepuff pure-blood third year. She is a shy, timid and rather insecure girl, however she is really loyal and protective of her friends. She's Amelia Bones's cousin, and is always around her. She is an only child who lives with her parents, Matthew and Piper, who are both wizards and have a small robes shop at Diagon Alley. Her best friends are also third year Hufflepuffs, Mariah, Lynn, Luna and Jane, and after befriending Mariah and Lynn she became quite close to Pandora Fletcher, too. Her electives are Muggle Studies, Divination and Care of Magical Creatures, and she is also the Hufflepuff seeker.

**Lucas "Luke" Hawthorn**: He is a Hufflepuff Muggle-born sixth year. He is a cheerful and confident boy who despises the Sorting Hat because he's always believed he would make a good Gryffindor. He lives with his parents, Oliver and Brook, who are both Muggle journalists, and his little brother Will, who is twelve and isn't magical. He's best friends with fellow Hufflepuff Connor and used to be Amelia's boyfriend, although they broke up before he finished his fifth year. His electives are Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes, and his NEWT classes are Transfigurations, Potions and DADA. He is also one of the sixth year Hufflepuff prefects and Beater for the Quidditch team.

**Connor Goldstein**: He is a Hufflepuff half-blood seventh year. He seems to have two different personalities. In public, he is quiet, shy and kind of a bookworm, but in private and with friends he thinks he can really trust he's loud and funny and a really nice person to be around. He lives in Doncaster with his father, Anthony Goldstein, and his sister Mariah, who is thirteen and best friends with Pandora Fletcher. His best friend is William Hall, who is a Ravenclaw, and he is also very close to a fellow Hufflepuff, Luke Hawthorn. He has a girlfriend, Kayla, who is a Gryffindor. His electives are Ancient Runes and Arithmancy and his NEWTs are Transfigurations, Defense Against Dark Arts and Charms. He is also Hufflepuff keeper and Head Boy.

**Isabelle "Is" Alden**: She is a Ravenclaw Muggle-born fourth year. She is the perfect Ravenclaw: top of her year, smart and witty but humble about it. She is quite shy around strangers but is extremely confident and outgoing with her best friends. She lives in center London with her parents, Rachel and Jacques, and her little brother Hugo, who is curiously showing signs of being magical too although he is only ten. She is best friends with two fellow Ravenclaw fourth years, Rose Kelly and Nick Creevey. Rose often bugs her and Nick about them being a couple, which always makes Isabelle blush. Her electives are Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures. She's also one of the Ravenclaw chasers.

**Rose Michelle Kelly**: She is a Ravenclaw Pure-blood fourth year. She is a bookworm and loves everything related to Ancient Runes. She also dislikes anything related to blood status and despises of most Pure-bloods at school, and therefore is often referred to as 'blood traitor' by some Slytherins. She comes from an old Wizarding Irish, but she was born in England to an English witch mother. She loves talking to portraits and is really smart. She lives with her father, a cheery Irish wizard named Michael Kelly, and her mom, an English witch named Fiona. She has three younger sisters: Maria, who is eleven and has been placed in Ravenclaw too, Katie, eight, and Sophie, five. She is best friends with Isabelle and Nick and often picks on them by saying they're a couple. Her electives are Ancient Runes and Arithmancy, and she's also a Ravenclaw beater.

**Bruno Broughton**: He's a Ravenclaw Half-blood fifth year. He is a smart, cunning boy who is also quite loud and funny, a brilliant prankster and top of his year. He loves reading and wants to become an Auror. He lives in Wimbledon with his dad Albert, a Muggle History teacher, and his mum, Grace, a witch who works at Gringotts and is Rose's mum's sister. He also has two younger siblings: Jamie, who is a cheery eight-year-old boy, and Marianne, his twelve-year-old sister who is also a Ravenclaw. His electives are Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes, and he is also one of the Ravenclaw chasers and team captain.

**Nicholas "Nick" Creevey**: He's a Ravenclaw Half-blood fourth year. He is a cheery, lively boy who loves taking photographs with his camera, taken from his deceased uncle Colin. He is also really smart and loves reading, and is the top of his year after Isabelle, whom he is very fond of. He lives in Oxford with his dad, Dennis, who works for the Ministry, his mum, Alice, who is a Muggle professor at the Oxford University and his little sister Julia, who is seven. His best friends are Isabelle and Rose, and he's been wondering lately if he might fancy Isabelle. His electives are Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes, and he is the Ravenclaw seeker.

**Olivia "Liv" Preston**: She's a Slytherin Half-blood sixth year. To her House mates, she seems like a quiet and methodical girl who doesn't talk much, but to her real friends from other Houses she's pretty lively and outgoing. She lives in Plymouth with her father, a Muggle dentist named Peter, and her mother, a witch who works at the Department of Mysteries and is called Flora. She also has two younger brothers, Mason, who is fourteen and in Hufflepuff, and Carter, eleven and Ravenclaw. She despises most of her House mates and often hangs out with people from other Houses, having become best friends with Sara Wood and Eleanor Rigby. Her electives are Arithmancy and Muggle Studies, and her NEWT classes are Transfigurations, Charms, DADA and History of Magic. She is a Slytherin prefect for sixth year.

**Eleanor "Ellie" Rigby**: She's a Slytherin Muggle-born fifth year. She is often bullied by her House mates, so she has always hung out with people from other Houses. To her House mates, she is quiet and sometimes rude, just to shelter herself from their insults and jokes about her, but with her friends she's a lively, outgoing girl. She lives in Bath with her parents, two Muggle scientists named Ethan and Danielle. She is best friends with Olivia Preston and quite close to Sara Wood too. She's also friends with Bruno Broughton, but despises Jason because she thinks he is a complete jerk. Her electives are Arithmancy and Ancient Runes.

**Jack Westron**: He's a Slytherin Half-blood seventh year. He is strong, ambitious and emotionally composed, although he can sometimes be rather authoritative. He doesn't usually hang around with people from his House. He lives with his parents, Richard and Elizabeth, who are both magical and work for the Ministry, but he's a Half-blood since his mum was Muggle-born. He has an older sister, Michelle, who is now nineteen and used to be a Hufflepuff, and a younger brother, John, who is twelve and a Gryffindor. His friends are Matthew Ebornheart, Olivia Preston and Eleanor Rigby. His electives are Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures, and his NEWT classes are Transfigurations, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms and Potions. He is also Head Boy.

**Matthew "Matt" Ebornheart**: He's a Slytherin Pure-blood seventh year. He is handsome, intelligent and might look slightly arrogant, but he's more of a hardcore boy, he often shields himself from trusting people because he lost all of his family at age seven. He lives with his only remaining relative, his grandfather Rufus, and comes from a long Slytherin ancestry family, although his grandfather was actually a Gryffindor. He only trusts Jack as a real friend, but sometimes hangs out with Olivia and Eleanor if necessary, although he's somewhat rude to them. His electives are Arithmancy and Ancient Runes, and his NEWT lessons are Transfigurations, Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms. He is also one of the Slytherin Quidditch chasers.

So, those are the seventeen characters you'll meet over the next who-knows-how-many chapters! I hope you liked the small bios, and please tell me if I made any mistakes! Note that I had to relate characters with each other, so I made some of them cousins and friends and such! I hope that's okay with all of you.

As for couples, I had thought of the following: Sara/Tom, Jason/Eleanor, Louis/Rose, Bruno/Amelia, Matt/Olivia. I hope that's okay with everyone!

Here you have the full-length summary:

**Hogwarts, 2030**. Students are back to school, expecting a nice and relaxed year, but something has actually been stirring up outside the school. A small, anonymous Dark Force has taken over the Ministry. The Defence Against The Dark Arts professor, Professor Bell, has been mysteriously replaced by a grumpy old man named Mosad Muffel, who prohibits them from using practical magic too. And worst will come when Professor McGonagall mysteriously disappears from the school and is replaced by a Ministry woman called Dolores Umbridge as Headmaster of Hogwarts...only a handful of the Professors will be able to stay, and in a school repressed by Dark Arts teachers, a group of seventeen students will prepare themselves to battle the new enemy that is rising to power.

So that's pretty much it for now. Chapter one will come soon!

Maya x


	2. Chapter One: A Train Ride

**Chapter One: A Train Ride**

_Shiver ~ Coldplay_

_..._

**Tom's POV**

And once again, I was there, sitting in the Hogwarts Express. Everything seemed like the same, yet it was totally different. I looked in front of me and saw Jason reading a book thoughtfully. He hadn't said much, knowing how difficult that summer had been. To my left, Sara squeezed my hand.

"Everything will be fine," she whispered.

I wasn't so sure. I knew my father's sudden death while he worked at the Ministry hadn't been an accident, as the letter had told us – I knew something weird was going on, and I felt determined to know what was it. My little brother Danny, who was only ten, had been left without his father, and my mother was now a widow. I had sworn to myself that I would discover what was behind that suspicious gas breakout in the Ministry that had brutally killed a ten of the best Aurors, who were there in a meeting.

I knew Sara could understand me. She had grown up without her father, after all. After her mother told him she was a witch, when Sara and her sister Lily were both eight and three years old, her father had abandoned them. But it still didn't feel the same.

And just to make things worse, I had this bugging feeling every time my eyes met Sara's. What was wrong with me anyway? She was my best friend, she had always been after our first year together. Over the last year, I had started feeling like I sort of liked her...but the feeling had grown into something a lot more deeper. Could I _love_ her? The sole thought of it made my heart beat a great deal faster.

We would have usually sat down with our other friends, but we wanted to stay alone. We brought Jason with us after he told us he knew some things about the breakout in the Ministry and the new Minister of Magic, Malvatio Frevler. I wanted to stay quiet forever, feeling Sara's hand on mine and the soft rattle of the train through the English countryside. But of course, I never got what I asked for.

The compartment door slid open, and a small, skinny boy with curly blond hair and brown eyes walked in, followed by a younger, tanned girl with short brown hair and dark eyes. They both looked at each other, doubting they had done well by entering the compartment. I knew them from seeing them walking around the Gryffindor common room, but I didn't know their names. Jason, however, seemed to recognize the boy.

"Louis!" he called him. "Had a good summer, pal?"

"Not bad," Louis murmured. "Taking into account my dad was murdered at the gas breakout that happened in the Ministry."

My eyes widened. I looked at Louis, surprised. Sara seemed equally surprised, while the girl next to him just let out a loud sigh. No-one said nothing, perhaps because we all felt terribly awkward. I then remembered I had seen Louis at the small ceremony they held for the dead Ministry workers, but I hadn't realized until he mentioned his father's death.

"My name is Pandora," the younger girl explained. "I spent the summer researching about the gas breakout, and I found out some quite interesting stuff about it. I thought I could let you guys know..."

I eyed Sara doubtfully. I wasn't sure if I really wanted to know why had the gas breakout happened, I hadn't even asked Jason yet. But she gave me a small nod, and I nodded back. I knew it was better to learn what had really happened, no matter how much would it hurt me to know.

"Take a seat, please," Sara asked both of them politely.

Louis and Pandora did as they were told. The boy took a seat next to Jason, who closed his book and for once didn't do one of his cheeky remarks about Pandora's looks like he usually did with girls, but only sat there in a polite silence.

I didn't have the faintest idea about what I was about to hear, but I already knew I wouldn't enjoy it very much.

**Rose's POV**

Bruno had been looking for his friends from Gryffindor, after sparing a few words with his friend Jason, he returned to our compartment. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, staring through the window. Although the gas breakout in the Ministry had happened almost two months ago, but I still felt broken at the thought of my dead mother. Dad had been rather aggressive over the summer, but I knew I couldn't blame him. I knew how much he loved mum. Still, I had to spend the whole summer fighting back tears and taking care of my younger sisters. Little Sophie didn't have the faintest idea about what was going on, but Katie had been sad and asking for mum for the whole break. I felt really sad about Maria, she had turned into a quiet, shy girl, nothing like the outgoing girl she used to be before the accident.

Isabelle and Nick were sitting in front of me. Isabelle looked at me with a worried expression, and Nick chewed one of his Chocolate Frogs thoughtfully. I knew they couldn't find words to comfort me. Isabelle was Muggle-born, so she still was getting used to the Wizarding world, even after four years studying at Hogwarts. Nick was just too quiet to comment anything. I knew he feared he'd hurt me with what he said, so he always stayed quiet and just ate Bertie Bott's All-Flavoured Beans or whatever he got his hands onto.

I heard the door sliding open and saw Bruno entering the compartment. He's my only cousin from my mother's side, and we're both quite close. I'm named after his mother, after all. He took a seat next to me and gave me a comforting hug. He's a year older than me, but we've always been quite close. We sat down together in silence for a couple of minutes until he spoke up.

"Rose, Jason has told me something," he whispered. "He knows some things about the gas breakout in the Ministry."

I felt a sudden lump in my throat. I wasn't sure I wanted to know what had really happened. Knowing my mum was dead was painful enough, but I somehow knew I should learn why she had died.

"Speak then," I croaked after a while.

Bruno raised his eyebrows. "You sure?"

Isabelle and Nick shared concerned glances, but I ignored them and gave my cousin a firm nod. Bruno let out a small sigh and as I heard him start the story of my mother's death, I felt like nothing would ever be the same after his story.

**Amy's POV**

"So you're telling me," muttered Luke next to me. "That what killed all of those Aurors was planned by Frevler and his henchmen?"

Connor gave us a firm nod. I felt how tears started filling my eyes again. My father's death – my father's death had been carried out by the new Minister of Magic! I could barely believe it. I felt how Luke tried to hug me in comfort, but I pushed him away. I knew he wanted to make me like him again, but I would not forgive him after what I saw last year. He had been kissing another girl when he was dating me! I finally resolved breaking up with him had been a good idea, because I had never loved him anyway. Besides, I had always fancied someone else, and I felt like I did nothing but harm myself by making myself think I loved Luke.

I did accept Daisy's comforting embrace, though. My little cousin was barely thirteen back then, but she had grown up a lot over the summer. She did rely on me a lot, but now I needed her more than ever. I hugged her tightly, trying to fight back tears.

"I'm sorry I told you, Amy," said Connor. "But I thought you should know."

I nodded. I wanted to go see my friends, but I knew they were all spread throughout the train. Jason was with his friends Louis and Tom, who had also lost their fathers in the accident. Bruno was with his cousin Rose, who had lost her mother, and Eleanor was with her Slytherin friends. I hoped to find them after the train ride to Hogwarts, but I doubted I would be able to see them until the feast was over.

"It's okay, Connor," I muttered. "I _had_ to know. It's just...too many things to cope with right now, you know."

Connor nodded knowingly, although I doubted he had the slightest idea of how it feels to lose a father. I felt Daisy squeezing my hand comfortingly, and for once after two months, I felt determined about something.

I would get to the bottom of the matter and discover why had the Ministry suddenly decided to kill ten of the brightest Aurors in the Ministry.

**Jack's POV**

I sat there, straight-faced. After what Livy had told us about the suspicious gas breakout, I didn't know what to say. I wouldn't cry, Jack Westron had not cried since age five. I just sat there, thinking about how ten of the greatest Aurors in the Ministry had been killed – my mother counting as one of these. I couldn't understand why had all this happened, for a start. I knew the new Minister of Magic, Malvatio Frevler, was rotten stuff, but I'd never suspected he would come to such a crime as it is to kill the best Aurors in the Auror Office.

"You know what's coming next, don't you?" snorted Matt, sitting next to me. "The Ministry will take over Hogwarts, just like they did in 1995. They'll send in new teachers who won't teach us a damn thing, and we won't learn _anything_. Most likely, there's some Dark Arts involved too. Those ten Aurors murdered were just the trigger of a major conspiracy against the peace in our world."

"One of 'those ten Aurors' was my mother, if I may remind you," I snapped at him angrily.

Matt shrugged. "There were other nine Aurors murdered as well. You're not the only orphan in the Hogwarts Express, I presume. Look at those Gryffindor boys, Eleanor and Olivia's friends...Bates and Curdy. Their fathers were also murdered. And Bones's father was killed there, too. And that little girl, Kelly's mother was killed too!"

I sat silent after Matt's words. I knew he didn't want to show any emotion, but I knew it bothered him when people mourned around for no reason. He himself had lost all of his family but his grandfather at age seven, and has sworn to never had cried once ever since. His family's death had made him grow up father, although it had drastically toughened his personality.

We all sat down in silence. A while later, Eleanor asked Olivia if they should go and check how was everyone else doing, and Olivia agreed that would probably be a good idea. The two girls left our compartment with 'good-byes' and a small hug from Eleanor to each of us, and so Matt and I were left alone in the compartment. My friend moved onto the seat in front of me and lay down, stretching himself out. I had changed myself into my Slytherin uniform, but I hadn't put my cloak on yet. Matt used his cloak as a blanket and dozed off to sleep. Great, now I was all alone.

I stared through the window. We were almost there, arriving to Hogsmeade. In about ten minutes, the train would stop, and the whistling would wake Matt up. Both of us would start our last year at Hogwarts, but I felt it would be nothing like the past years. As we approached the Hogsmeade station, I swore something to myself.

I would avenge my father's death.

...

**Author's Note**: So, there it is! I hope you liked the first chapter. I know it wasn't much, but I thought I should introduce you to the situation with this chapter. Anyways, here's the deal: five of the students' parents have been murdered in a suspicious gas breakout in the Ministry no-one really buys. But things are just about to get worse. What will lay ahead of our seventeen characters? You'll find out next chapter.

Also, I've thought of adding a song at the start of the chapter, which I think would fit the chapter. Just a small idea I had!

Next chapter will be up soon!

Maya x


	3. Chapter Two: The Welcome Feast

**Chapter Two: The Not-So-Great Welcome Feast**

_Six Feet Under The Stars ~ All Time Low_

_..._

**Sara's POV**

Tom, Jason and I rode the carriage to the school with Eleanor and Olivia. We had asked Amy and Bruno if they'd like to come over, but Bruno said he wanted to stay with his cousin and we saw Amy was just too upset to answer. As always, Jason wouldn't stop teasing Eleanor, who rolled her eyes and sneered at his comments. I knew he only did it because he fancied her, but he wouldn't even admit it.

"So, Rigby," said Jason as we jumped off the carriage and headed towards the castle. "How's life in the Muggle world? It must be a bit hard to leave magic behind and just be a Muggle for two months, isn't it?"

Eleanor glared at him and scoffed, "I may not have an oh-so-wonderful giant Wizarding house, Poole, but I tell you, at least I have some morals."

"Morals?" Jason smirked. "What morals could you have, being in Slytherin?"

The girl glared at him once again, and mumbled, "Oh, shut the fuck up, you arsehole."

"Said what, Rigby?" he asked, rather cheekily.

"Being in Slytherin doesn't make me a total arse," she practically yelled at him. "And, of course, there's people who are a great deal nicer than you in any House. If being in Slytherin meant having no morals and being a bullying toerag, then _you_ should be a Slytherin! Stupid comments like yours only make me feel worse in my own House, do you realize that?"

Jason chuckled at Eleanor's words, but said nothing. Olivia and I glared at him, for Eleanor was our friend and we didn't like it when he picked on her, despite we knew he was a great guy after all. Tom just stood there silently, his hands stuffed into his gray pants' pockets. He wore his Gryffindor cloak unbuttoned, and his tie seemed to hang around loosely around his neck. I tried to fix it into his collar, chuckling softly.

"Six years at Hogwarts and you still don't know how to put a tie on properly," I muttered, just loud enough for him to hear.

Tom chuckled, but said nothing. When I looked up to his green eyes, I was surprised to see his cheeks had turned bright red. I smiled at this. What was going on in my mind about Tom, anyway? I felt like something had changed. I had been thinking about it for the whole summer, and I had come to the conclusion that I had started feeling attracted towards him. If it was just a stronger kind of friendship or a romantic attraction, I couldn't tell. But I definitely felt something in my stomach whenever he was around.

Eleanor and Olivia went to sit down at the Slytherin table, and the three of us found our House mates already sat down and waiting happily for the Welcome Feast. I took a seat next to Pandora, and Tom sat next to me. Our mates from the sixth year were already there. Jason sat down with his roommates, Daniel and Ben, and the three of them started commenting what they'd done in summer between excited whispers. My roommates Rachel and Lauren, who were really close friends of mine, greeted me happily. Lauren, who was also Louis's older sister, sat next to her brother with a sad expression. I knew her father had been one of the Aurors murdered at the gas outbreak, although I ignored if she knew about everything that Pandora and Louis had told us, about the new Minister of Magic and the plot to conquer the Wizarding world.

During the Sorting Ceremony, I recognized Lauren and Louis's younger sister, Juno, who had been sorted into Gryffindor. I also recognized Bruno's little cousin, Maria, who was sorted into Ravenclaw, and Olivia's brother Carter, who became a Ravenclaw too. I heard Pandora commenting loudly that 'Fletcher, Noah' was her little brother, and that he had been sorted into Hufflepuff.

After the Sorting Ceremony was over, the Great Hall broke into a general murmur noise level. I heard a group of second year Hufflepuffs commenting about the changes in the Ministry and how some of the Heads of various offices and departments had once been related to Dark Arts and Lord Voldemort. I wanted to believe they were mere rumours, but when McGonagall stood up to give her welcoming speech and I saw the stern expression on her features, I knew something she didn't like very much was going on.

"This year we will be having quite a few changes," she announced. "Professor Angus Bell, who previously taught Defense Against the Dark Arts, will be – " McGonagall seemed to hesitate for a second. " – Temporarily away due to an illness. He will be replaced by a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor sent by the Ministry, Professor Mosad Muffel."

Everyone started clapping politely as a small man with a long, white mustache stood up from the Professors table. He looked grumpy, old and tremendously severe, nothing like Professor Bell, who had been a brilliant teacher and extremely passionate about his job. After a small round of applause, Professor Muffel sat down again, and McGonagall spoke up again.

"And replacing Professor Trelawney in Divination," said McGonagall, with a hurt expression. "Due to her reach of an old age, the Ministry has sent Professor Amette Ledranch to teach Divination."

A small, puffy-looking woman stood up, with a rather devilish smile. In that very moment I thanked dear Merlin for not having Divination as an elective subject. Following Professor Muffel's suit, Professor Ledranch sat down after a polite round of applause.

"And finally, replacing Professor Slughorn in Potions," concluded Professor McGonagall. "Here is our third and last new professor, Professor Botond Houden."

Professor Houden was perhaps the scariest of the three new teachers. He was young, not any older than twenty-eight or so, and to be honest, really handsome. However, he seemed painfully evil too. He had a serious expression in his face that made me involuntarily squeeze Tom's hand in pure frighten.

"What's the matter?" he whispered.

I realized I was squeezing his hand so tight it had turned red, so I quickly let go of it and felt how my cheeks started reddening.

"Nothing..." I answered.

Truth? I couldn't help but think those three new professors would be nothing but trouble.

**Bruno's POV**

I think no-one in the whole Great Hall, not even Professor McGonagall, liked the suspicious-looking Mosad Muffel, Amette Ledranch and Botond Houden. In the Ravenclaw table, everyone commented in faint whispers how devilish the three of them looked. Some commented they were going to take the Carrow siblings' role in the 1997-1998 year, but everyone agreed in one thing: If Muffel and Ledranch looked bad enough, Houden was the worst-looking of them by far. He had that devilish gleam in his eyes that made me want to back away, but I said nothing as I sat with my fellow House mates in silence.

"Whatever the reason of their presence here is, it musn't be good at all," whispered my roommate Henry.

"I think they're Frevler's henchmen," commented Joseph. "My dad told me about them. A bunch of spooky-looking guys just walk around the Ministry every day, and they sometimes even take workers with them if they do something they aren't meant to do. Rumours say, those workers aren't seen around again once they follow the Temperors."

"The _Temperors_?" I repeated, not understanding the word.

"That's how Frevler's henchmen call themselves," Joseph explained. "And I suspect Frelver himself calls them his Temperors, too. My dad told me."

I knew Joseph's dad worked in the Magical Regulation Department, so he must have known what was going on at the Ministry very well.

"What I don't understand," said Helena, a sixth year from our House. "Is why would Kingsley Shacklebolt quit the position."

Marlene, one of Helena's closest friends rolled her eyes, as if the answer were obvious, and said, "He was quite old for the job, so he quitted. The Dark Forces – or wherever that nasty Frevler comes from – took advantage of this and snuck into the Ministry, along with all of his henchmen. Now, I bet the old man was a Death Eater or something back in the Wizarding Wars."

I nodded in agreement.

"Malvatio Frevler," I said. "I believe I read his name somewhere."

"Broughton and his books," chuckled Henry with a small laugh. "I'm sure he'll find the answer to our problem."

I ignored my roommate's words and started racking my brain. There must have been something I read a while ago. Malvatio...Malvatio Frevler...oh, come on Bruno! There must be _something_ about Malvatio Frevler inside that brain of yours!

I felt how someone shook my shoulder gently. I turned around and found Nick giggling as he always did.

"What?" I asked, a bit exasperated. The boy did tick me off sometimes.

"Amelia Bones is staring at you," laughed Isabelle, next to Nick. "_Again_."

My eyes searched for the aforementioned girl in the Hufflepuff table. For a second, my green eyes met Amy's, which were bright blue, but then she looked away quickly. Even from the distance, I could see her cheeks had turned bright red, and I felt my heart beating faster inside my chest. What was that bugging feeling in the stomach, anyway? I spent my fourth year fancying her, despite knowing she was dating that Luke guy. But I had heard from Jason that they had broken up last spring...

I only realized I was still staring at her, with my hand under my chin and the most stupid expression Hogwarts has probably ever seen, when Nick shook my shoulder again.

"Wake up, lover boy."

I glared at him, and then realized all of the food was still in my plate. How come I hadn't eaten a thing yet? I glanced at Amelia one last time before I started chewing one of my chips thoughtfully.

That girl definitely had something.

**Luke's POV**

The rest of the feast went more or less well. I kept on glancing at Amelia every now and then, but she seemed to ignore me completely. I even caught her _staring_ at that Broughton guy at least once or twice. And their eyes met and she got all blushed! How pathetic. That Broughton guy really ticks me off, and I'll have to get rid of him if I want to get Amelia back.

"Say Connor, who's that guy sitting in the Ravenclaw table?" I asked casually to my best friend, nodding towards Bruno.

"Oh, Broughton?" he asked. "He's the Ravenclaw keeper and team captain this year, didn't you know? He's really close friends with Amelia and her friends, right Amy?"

Amy turned bright red and said nothing, pretending she hadn't heard Connor's question. But to me, it was more than enough. I clenched my fists at the thought of that Bruno kissing Amy..._my_ Amy. I know I shouldn't have done what I did to her, but she couldn't just break up with me like all those months together had meant nothing to her!

"I'll be sure to send a Bludger right to his head," I mumbled under my breath.

I think Amy heard what I said, because she whispered something to her friend Bianca and swapped places with her. I frowned, because now she was right in front of Bruno Broughton. I saw how she kept on staring at him, and I couldn't do anything. Why couldn't she just understand it _hurt_ me to see her looking at another guy with those big, beautiful blue eyes like she never had looked at me?

I fidgeted angrily with my chocolate pudding. I didn't feel like eating anything, so I just frowned angrily and smashed my dessert against the golden plate. I thought I was going to break the spoon when Connor shook my arm gently.

"Let it be, Luke," he whispered. "It's better this way. She really likes Bruno, I know that as a fact. You're...you're young and handsome, man. You should find another girl and forget about her."

"But what if I don't want to forget about her?" I snapped angrily. "Last year was the best one of my life, and it was all because Amy was my girl."

Connor shrugged, "Then you shouldn't have cheated on her, man. What did you think you were doing, anyway? Amelia is a great girl and she didn't deserve what you did to her. The only reason you lost her was that, Luke, not her fancying Bruno or anything else you might be making up in your mind – it was _your_ fault, and _you_ are the one to deal with the consequences."

I simply couldn't open my mouth after my friend's small speech. I felt so embarrassed, realizing everything he had just said was perfectly true. I was the only reason why Amy had broken up with me. If I had stayed loyal, if only that stupid girl hadn't driven me crazy like she did...

I knew my relationship with Amy wouldn't return from out of the blue, but I was going to do anything possible to win her heart back.

**Matt's POV**

Once the feast was over, the four of us headed back to the Slytherin common room. Eleanor looked nothing like her lively, happy self – she was all grumpy and annoyed, as every time she talked to Jason Poole. Olivia had filled us in about what had happened. I certainly didn't care about blood status, unlike most of my House mates – if I didn't, I wouldn't have befriended Eleanor, for a start. But I didn't think Jason had said anything bad, either. Of course, I felt rather awkward at his comment on Slytherins, but I knew that was how the whole school felt about us.

The four of us made our way down to the dungeons, walking a few feet behind a group of particularly nasty Slytherins. All came from long, ancient Pure-blood families: Malfoys, Parkinsons, Blacks...all rubbish, I thought. I hated them with all my might, but of course I didn't show any emotions towards them, not one. I didn't show any emotions towards anyone, really. Jack was there to hate them for the two of us, really.

"Hey, Westron!" called Evan Black, a sixth year. "How's your mummy?"

Jack clenched his fists and I knew he was just about to hit Parkinson. I gently patted his back, advising him that wasn't the best thing to do. Our new Head of House was Professor Houden, Slughorn's substitute, and I knew he was one of those wizards who favoured people like the group in front of us.

"Say, Black," called Olivia. "If your mum and dad get a divorce – would they still be brother and sister?"

I couldn't help but let out a loud laugh at Olivia's comment. I loved how she had all these great comebacks, and how she found sarcasms and puns to throw at people in every situation. Eleanor started laughing loudly, and even Jack cracked a small chuckle. Black stood there, frowning deeply at Olivia. I thought he would just turn around and scoff as he usually did, but instead he whipped out his wand and walked towards us four.

"I'd shut up if I were you, you stupid Half-blood," he whispered. "I don't think Professor Houden will enjoy punishing you in our first day, will he? Now just shut the fuck up and take your filthy Mudblood friend with you."

"_I_ think _you_ should be the one to shut up, Black," muttered Olivia under her breath. "Dare to call Eleanor – that – again, and I'll make sure you wake up next to the Giant Squid._ And not precisely in a dry place_."

Once again, the four of us cracked into laughter. Even Jack laughed heartily now, forgetting about his problems for a while. Olivia gave Evan a challenging smile, but the Black boy just backed away and scowled.

"Wait until the Death Eaters take the school," whispered Evan. "You just wait."

"Oooh, I'm trembling," scoffed Olivia, pretending to shake her hand.

Black glared at her yet another time, and whipped out his wand once again, although this time he was interrupted by Professor Houden, who had followed his House's students down to the dungeons.

"Ah, mister," he sighed at the sight of Evan with his wand pointing at Olivia. "Anything the matter?"

Black's brow furrowed. "Nothing, professor."

"Well, you'd better get moving then, young man," he said, ushering the small group into the common room. "I don't think you want to get punished by your own Head of House on your very first day, do you? Pointing at a lady is never a nice thing to do."

Black and his friends seemed disappointed by our Head of House's words, but they finally decided to obey. They glared at us one last time before walking through the portrait hole, cursing Muggles and Merlin knows what else. Then, Professor Houden gave us a small gesture that told us we should head into the common room too.

"I want no more childish fights in this respectable House, is it clear?" he told us right before we entered the common room. "Slytherin has always been the most respectable house in Hogwarts and no stupid game of puns will ruin our reputation. Heard that, miss Preston?"

Olivia seemed to frown, but finally nodded. The four of us entered the Slytherin common room. Most of the younger students had already left to their comfortable, quiet bedrooms, were they would take their first sleep at the school, whilst the older students were lounging around in the couches. None of us liked mixing with them, so we chose a small table in a corner of the common room. Once we all had sunk into our chairs, Jack's expression broke into a huge grin.

"That was _brilliant_, Olivia!" he exclaimed, barely being able to hold back his laughter. He mimicked Olivia's voice, "_Say, Black, if your mum and dad get a divorce – would they still be brother and sister?_ Epic, just epic. You rule, Livy."

Olivia, however, didn't seem to be listening to Jack's praises. She sat there, her brow deeply furrowed, and staring down at the green carpet. We all looked at her, concern set in our expressions.

"Anything the matter, Livy?" asked Eleanor, placing her hand over her best friend's.

Olivia kept on ignoring us for a few minutes, until she spoke up a while later, looking at the three of us with the same worried expression she had worn when we had first learned about the gas breakout in the Ministry.

"How could Professor Houden know my name," she whispered. "If students haven't been introduced to him yet?"

...

**Author's Note**: Oooh, spooky Professor Houden! Anyway, I hope you've liked this new chapter. It took me a while to get it finished, but now...done! Anyways, I hope all of the characters are, well, in-character. I'm glad to see many of you reviewed the previous chapters, all with positive comments on the story! I love to know you guys are enjoying the story so far.

Next chapter will come over this week. Until then,

Maya x


	4. Chapter Three: First Lessons

**Chapter Three: First Classes in the Castle**

_What Do You Want From Me? ~ Forever The Sickest Kids_

_..._

**Louis's POV**

My first lesson of the year would be Potions with the Slytherins, which isn't what you'd call a good start for a good term. It would have been acceptable with Slughorn, but now we had that weird-looking new professor...Houden, I believe he was named.

After breakfast, I headed to the dungeons with Jason and Eleanor. The girl still held a small grudge against Jason because of what he had said yesterday, but she was as cheery and nice as always to me. She told me about her summer and a beautiful trip to Rome, her visit to her Muggle cousins' cottage and plenty of other things. I didn't speak much, but she understood, after all that happened to my father. I wanted to move on and carry a normal life, really, but I just couldn't. Every time my friends mentioned their fathers or their families, my mind would reel back to the very last thing I'd said to my dad.

_"Oh, and try to buy me some Chocolate Frogs after work, please!"_

Chocolate Frogs. _Freaking Chocolate Frogs_. What was I thinking of? If only I could turn back time and tell him not to go to work that day...I felt a throbbing pain in my chest, and looked down to the floor. I hated that feeling.

"Lou, you fine?" asked Eleanor, concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I whispered weakly. "It's just – too many memories."

"Oh, sorry bout that," answered Eleanor, giving me a small smile. "Do you want me to stay quiet?"

"No, no please," I told her, giving her an encouraging smile. "How did your first night here go?"

Eleanor let out a loud laugh and proceeded to storytelling what had happened yesterday in the dungeons. She barely could talk while repeating what Olivia had said to Evan Black, and I smiled along. Jason chuckled to my side.

"That Preston girl does have her moments," he chuckled. "No-one would say she's a Slytherin."

Eleanor frowned at him, but said nothing. I knew Eleanor knew better than to push the subject, because Jason would only make things worse and they would end up yelling at each other. When we reached the Potions classroom in the dungeons, Eleanor sat down with one of the Gryffindor fifth year girls, Juliet, and pulled out her books, while Jason and I took seats in the back of the class.

"That Rigby girl," Jason said, flipping through his text book with a bored expression. "She definitely has something, doesn't she?"

"Well done, Sherlock," I answered, rolling my eyes. Then I chuckled when I saw him sighing. "You've finally noticed. Yeah, Ellie is quite a nice girl, once you get to know her. I think you guys could be good friends, if you tried. You'd just have to stop picking on her for being a Slyth –"

I was cut off by the silent entrance of our new Potions teacher into the classroom. Professor Houden wore a black, rather frightening cloack which made him look like a ghost, contrasting with his extremely pale face. I heard some Slytherin girls sighing, probably admiring their new and handsome Head of House. Eleanor, however, just rolled her eyes and flipped her textbook open.

"Welcome to your first class of your fifth year," said Houden with his low, hoarse voice. "I can see you're all Gryffindors and Slytherins, right? I see. Well, this year will be packed with challenges and new – and extremely important – exams, named the OWLs. What can you tell me about OWLs in Potions?"

One of the Gryffindor girls, Emmeline, bolted her hand up, but Houden seemed to ignore it completely. After a few moments, Eleanor rose her hand too, and Houden allowed her to talk, after shushing some protesting Gryffindors.

"I believe there's both the theoretical and the practical exam, sir," she said. "But I'm afraid I don't know much about them. They will be like our past years' finals, but a lot more complex, I believe."

"Precisely, miss Rigby," answered Houden with a proud smile. "Five points to Slytherin. You'll have two exams, and I _will_ make sure they are evaluated according to each student's capacities. For instance, if a student spends the whole year snoozing and yawning – " he hit one of my roommates, Patrick Finnigan, with his sample of the fifth year textbook. "I'll make sure their exam is particularly difficult."

Patrick pouted noisily, but a single look into Professor Houden's big, stormy gray eyes made him realize he was better off silent.

So yeah, the new Potions Master was pretty much scaring the living crap out of me, and we were only twenty minutes into the lesson.

**Isabelle's POV**

After our first break, Nick and I had Care of Magical Creatures, whilst Rose had Arithmancy. The three of us strolled through the grounds of the school absentmindedly, talking about the summer, our families and funny anecdotes that made all of us burst out in laughter more than once. But in the end, Rose bade us goodbye as she walked back to the castle, while we headed off to the Care of Magical Creatures space in the Hogwarts grounds. There sat the rest of the class, looking excited for the new term.

As always, Nick and I sat in two separate tree stumps, next to each other. The tree stumps had been gently modeled into sort of chairs, but they were still quite uncomfortable.

"I wish Hagrid was still here," Nick whispered. "My dad said he was such a good man, and was so nice to all students...even Slytherins. Nothing like old and boring Zwoty."

"Eugh, his wart makes me sick," I laughed. "Why doesn't he remove it from his face?"

Nick gave me a loud laugh, "He will look revolting anyways."

"But it has _hair_!" Isabelle whispered. "_Hair in a wart_! It's downright wrong!"

Nick and I burst out in laughter as our fellow classmates start sitting around. We heard some footsteps coming and assumed it was Professor Zwoty, so we decided to stifle our laughter and try to look serious. However, we found ourselves face-to-face with nothing like grumpy old Zwoty. He was a young man with a big smile, sandy brown hair and big blue eyes we all knew too well.

"Blake!" one of the Hufflepuff girls almost squealed.

Blake Larossi had been Hagrid's assistant until the old gamekeeper had retired. Being only twenty-two years old, Blake had taken his place as gamekeeper, but Professor Zwoty replaced Hagrid as Care of Magical Creatures Master. Now that I thought of it, I hadn't seen Professor Zwoty in the Welcoming Feast. Could it be...?

"Hello, Alyssa dear," he said to the girl with a small laugh. "I know all of you know me as Blake, but from now on I'll be Professor Larossi. I will be your new Care of Magical Creatures professor, since Professor Zwoty is off to a five-year long trip around the world – for further information, talk to your Head of House, I don't really care where the good old man is," the whole class laughed and Blake gave off a smile. "Anyways, we'd better get started with your Care of Magical Creatures program. I'll just let you know what will you be facing over this year, and we'll comment about it. We'll start real, practical lessons next Wednesday."

Most of the girls in the class sighed out dreamily. I knew many of the girls at school fancied Blake Larossi, but over my last year I had resolved he wasn't really my type. I looked at Nick next to me. My friend seemed to kind of scoff at the girls' attention to our new teacher, but said nothing. We all opened our books after caressing their book spines. Blake – Professor Larossi from now on – told us about the contents of Year Four program for Care of Magical Creatures, which both Nick and I found greatly interesting.

"Oh, dear Merlin!" I whispered excitedly. "_Dragons_. I've always wanted to have a baby dragon in my hands!"

"That'll be wicked," Nick agreed, smiling.

Both of us listened cheerfully to our new professor. I've always wanted to study something related to Care of Magical Creatures, and this new teacher meant a boost of motivation for my future projects.

After the class was over, Nick and I headed to lunch at the Great Hall. We would meet Rose back there, and she would start babbling about how sickly boring Arithmancy is. Then we would pick on her and tell her it was her fault for having chosen such a boring subject, and then we'd all share a good laugh and start eating happily, as every other day.

"Nick?" I called my friend as we strode up to the castle.

"Yeah?" he answered, flipping through his new History of Magic book absentmindedly.

"I think this one's gonna be one wicked cool year," I whispered, giving my friend a huge smile.

**Daisy's POV**

Herbology had always been one of my best subjects. Professor Longbottom liked me very much. We had the lesson with the Gryffindors. At first, you'd think Professor Longbottom would favour them because he's their Head of House, but that is not true at all. He helped all of us and tried to make the best out of even the worst students. And believe me, there were some disastrous students in my House.

After lunch, I walked down to the Herbology class with Maria, Lynn and a boy from my year, Jasper. The four of us chatted happily, as every other day in the last couple of years. We met the Gryffindors outside Greenhouse Number Two. Maria and Lynn met their friend Pandora, and whispered excitedly. I stayed aside, since I didn't feel too comfortable with Pandora yet. Yeah, she seemed like a nice girl and all, but I hadn't gotten to know her much. I guessed I could always get to know her a little more, but I was too shy for that, so I stuck around with Jasper until Professor Longbottom arrived.

"Hello, class!" he greeted us with a big smile. "I'm glad to see you all. I hope summer was good, and I hope you're ready to get started with our classes too!"

Everyone nodded enthusiastically as we all stepped inside Greenhouse Number Two. Professor Longbottom said he wanted us to split into groups with Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs mixed, and girls and boys too. At first, we had a little trouble arranging ourselves, but I ended up in a group with Pandora and Jasper whilst Maria and Lynn seemed to practically drool over a rather nice-looking Gryffindor from our year, David Smith.

"Okay, today we're going to work with Puffapods," said Professor Neville enthusiastically. "Does any of you know what a Puffapod is?"

My hand bolted up, as I had practically memorized our Herbology textbook over the summer.

"Yes, Miss Redwood?" said Professor Longbottom.

"A Puffapod is a magical plant that produces large, pink seedpods filled with shining beans," I said, blurting the textbook out. "They have a very valuable commercial use, but scarcely any magical value."

"Excellent, Miss Redwood," Professor Longbottom said with a big smile. "Ten points for Hufflepuff. Now, I'll give you a plant per group – it will be your duty to water and take care of it every day until next week, when your first project will be evaluated."

Professor Longbottom handed us a small pot with a tiny Puffapod seed inside. Jasper started an Aguamenti spell on the plant. He wouldn't stop talking to me, which I enjoyed greatly. Jasper was a really nice friend and I loved our conversation. However, I was surprised by Pandora's smiling expression. When she announced we needed to take some more soil and invited me to come over, so I took the hint in her words and followed her.

"I think Jasper fancies you," she said rather bluntly as we grabbed a soil package.

I was shocked at Pandora's words.

"Really?" I asked. "I don't think so – I mean, Jasper's a close friend of mine – he'd never like me – I'm not interested on having a boyfriend yet – "

"You're babbling, Daisy," Pandora laughed.

I blushed at the comment, but said nothing. After a few seconds, I whispered her something back.

"Do you really think he fancies me?" I asked rather faintly.

"Oh, more than sure," Pandora laughed. "It's so obvious!"

"But – but I don't know how to act with boys," I muttered. "I mean...I think no-one's fancied me before! What should I do?"

Pandora gave me a huge smile and hung her arm around my shoulder.

"I think I'll be able to help you with that, my friend," she said, as we headed back to our desk, with Jasper waited for us with a puzzled – and oddly adorable – expression.

**Eleanor's POV**

Why must most of my lessons be with the Gryffindors? I wanted a break from Jason and his never-ending puns about Slytherin. I thanked Merlin or whoever was up there that I had my last lesson of the day with the Hufflepuffs, which meant I could happily pair up with Amelia and forget about Jason "Arsehole" Poole. The problem was, that very subject was one I dreaded the most – History of Magic. Could there be another subject half as boring and difficult as Professor Binns's?

Amelia and I walked to the History of Magic class along with other Hufflepuff and Slytherin fifth years. I saw some of Evan Black's friends were there too – I was unlucky enough to have them nagging around in almost every class I had. But now I stayed with Amy, who seemed to ignore my Slytherin mates' presence. We told each other about summer, boys, novels and movies – as any other fifteen-year-old would comment happily with her best friend.

We reached the History of Magic room and took seats at the middle of the classroom, because we knew all of the Slytherins would be sitting at the back and the last thing I'd like to deal with over a class as boring as History of Magic was a bunch of bored Slytherins. We didn't want to sit in the front because Binns would scold us for yawning, so we decided to stay in the middle, as always.

"Here goes an hour of non-stoppable rant about dates, wars and senseless Goblin names," muttered Amelia as Professor Binns entered the classroom, looking as ghostly as ever.

I'm afraid to say, my friend was terribly right. We spent our first History of Magic class practically yawning onto the desk, trying to make sense of Professor Binns's nonstop babbling. I was trying to note down a few dates when I felt a sudden buzz in my pocket. It was my Muggle BlackBerry. My friends had studied it thoroughly over our first days at Hogwarts, completely fascinated by the phone and how it worked. I still carried it around, although I barely talked to my Muggle friends any more. I slipped it out of my pocket and looked at the screen.

_Simon: Hows life Ells? :) xx_

I smiled. Simon was one of the two or three Muggle friends I still kept in touch with. He was a really sweet guy, and my Muggle best friend Claudia had told me he fancied me over the last summer. I smiled at his message and thought it wouldn't hurt to answer.

_Eleanor: Hm, alright...back to school! u? :] xx_

His answer came almost immediately.

_Simon: Elton's so boring, but at least I got 2 see my friends again! xx_

I smiled again, and decided a chat conversation wouldn't hurt.

_Eleanor: Awh, me 2 :) xx_

_Simon: U at class? xx_

_Eleanor: Yup, history - soooo boring hahaha xx_

_Simon: Haha, chem. xx_

_Eleanor: Cool, I dont take chem here xx_

_Simon: Aw, ur lucky. How r ur friends doin? xx_

_Eleanor: Sweet n nice as always :) urs? xx_

_Simon: Gr8. xx_

_Eleanor: Hey, g2g. Teachers gettin grumpy! xx_

_Simon: K, have fun :} xx ly_

_Eleanor: Ly 2! xx_

I slipped the phone inside my pocket and smiled. Simon was so sweet and nice, even when we talked through phone chat. Amy had been eyeing me, half-worried, half-curious, but said nothing. I briefly filled her in about Simon and my summer back home, and she smiled at every word. She finally told me I should go after him when we returned home for the Winter break, and I smiled goofily at the thought.

I almost didn't notice the bell had rung noisily, dismissing us from the last lesson of the day.

...

**Author's Note**: Phew! Finally, done. Sorry it took a while to finish this, I was kind of busy over the last days. Anyways, I want to thank **Tiger in the Snow **for giving me Blake Larossi's character, I liked him very much! Also, next chapter shall come soon, somewhere next week. Remember, the story is just getting started, so some of the characters don't even know each other yet! I'm trying to make characters bond between each other before they actually form the Order. Please review, and let me know what do you think about it (: xx


	5. Chapter Four: Spreading The Word

**Chapter Four: Spreading the Word**

_Highway To Hell ~ AC/DC_

...

**Pandora's POV**

I flopped onto one of the couches in the Gryffindor common room, breathing heavily after one particularly exhausting Divination class. Last period on Tuesdays was the worst hour of the week, Professor Medley was downright horrible. She insisted Divination was rubbish, and instead of teaching us how to actually _read_ tea pots, she just told us a gazillion ways of dismissing the results of these readings. It made no sense, especially to us, the third years who were only getting started at Divination. Maria and Daisy, who were my only two friends who had taken Divination, seemed equally fed up of our new Divinations Master when I left them as they walked back to the kitchens, which were next to the Hufflepuff common room.

"I – can't – take – it!" I breathed to myself as I stared at the crackling fire with a frown.

"Just came back from Divination, I see," smirked a voice to my side.

I turned around and saw Louis with a small, comprehending smile. I barely nodded.

"I hate that woman," I whispered. "I should have taken Ancient Runes...I knew Geena was right about it."

"Never mind that now," Louis said. "You're stuck in Divination till fifth year, at least." I glared at him, with a 'tell-me-something-I-don't-know' kind of stare. "But at least the grumpy old woman will be gone in no time."

"But look at Houden and Muffel, too," I croaked. "They're just as bad as Medley, and they teach _core subjects_. I don't want to fail DADA or Potions!"

"You won't fail," laughed someone to my other side. "You're brilliant, Dora."

I saw Sara sitting next to me, with Tom and a smirky Jason to her other side. Over the last couple of weeks – ever since we first met in the Hogwarts Express this year, really – I had grown quite close to these four fellow Gryffindors. Now I usually took meals with them and hung around with them at the common room, despite them being two or three years older than me.

"Thanks, Sara," I said truthfully. "But it will be a lot harder to pass with Houden breathing down my neck."

"Damn right," mused Jason. "The man annoys me."

"My Dad told me," said Tom. "That up until his third year at Hogwarts, he used to have Severus Snape as Potions Master. Now _that_ was annoying, to have the man breathing down onto your neck!"

Everyone nodded in agreement. I saw Tom's smile slightly fading out of his face at the thought of his father, but with a gente squeeze of Sara's hand on his, he was back to normal in a matter of seconds.

"Anyway," said Louis. "The worst, by far, is Defense Against the Dark Arts. I mean, they aren't instructing us! The Ministry's been attacked, and the only thing they can think of is sending a dumb, grumpy teacher over to the best Wizarding school in the UK and just keep us copying absurd theory for the whole hour!"

"That is very true," agreed Jason. "At least, the older students already had a good practical base, but what about the younger ones? They aren't learning a thing, with everything that's happening!"

I knew Jason was right. I was in my third year, and therefore not very fluent at Duelling yet. I often saw Tom, Jason and Louis playing around with charms and jinxes and usually thought I would never learn how to handle them because Professor Muffel insisted no practical examinations were needed to make us good wizards and witches.

"People should start learning how to properly use magic in their own defense," said Sara. "But teachers won't let us learn.

"But you guys are great at Duelling!" I exclaimed. "It should be me worrying." I looked at Tom and Jason. "You two are so brilliant at Transfigurations and Defense Against the Dark Arts, you could easily teach anyone how to master defensive spells." I then looked at Louis and Sara. "And you two are geniuses at Charms! You'd make the best teachers at hexes and jinxes. Not those crappy old teachers who dare to call themselves Professors."

Said this, I let out a small scoff and leaned back onto the couch. I saw Tom and Jason looking at each other, perplexed, and then the four older students looked at each other in amazement.

"Are you thinking of – ?" Tom started.

"We'd have to look it up in the library," Sara cut him urgently. "Find out how coins work, and how to find the Room of Requirement."

"And we'd need to find a way to recruit people," added Jason. "Won't be hard, I know how to spread the word of stuff without professors and Slytherins finding out."

"And we need to be real careful," concluded Louis. "With Houden, Muffel and Medley around, we could get expelled for it."

I eyed them suspiciously, not really getting what were they up to.

"What are you talking about?" I finally asked, as I heard their voices turning into quick whispers between each other.

Jason turned and grinned at me.

"Ever heard of Harry Potter, Dora?" he asked me.

"Of course I have," I scoffed. "I might be Muggle-born, but I know a great deal about him."

"Then you'll know what kind of aggrupation he created during his fifth year, right?" asked Louis.

I stared at them blankly for a few seconds, racking my brain. Then, my eyes widened as I realized what they meant.

"No...not his student Army, right?" I asked in a faint whisper.

"Yes, Pandora," answered Tom with a triumphant smile. "We are going to rebuild old Dumbledore's Army."

**Connor's POV**

The idea shocked me a bit at first. I had been sitting with Amy and her cousin Daisy, after a boring Wednesday taking our usual classes. As a Prefect, I had had to stop two Gryffindor second years who were arguing heavily with two Slytherins of their same year, but nothing else. Amy had said it had been a quite boring day for her too, and Daisy had been complaining about Muffel and his painfully terrible Defense Against the Dark Arts classes. Well, that was until Luke came running into our common room, wearing a huge grin on his face.

"Guys!" he had said, calling us. "Some Gryffindors are organizing a sort of club to get ourselves instructed on Defense Against the Dark Arts!"

I sat there, frowning. Luke went on talking about the old Dumbledore's Army and how Tom Bates, the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, had thought of restoring it in order to teach students proper magic. I knew Tom exceeded at everything related to magic, so I thought the idea was brilliant. Amy and Daisy seemed to agree, whispering excitedly to each other.

"And what are we supposed to do?" I asked to my best friend once he had finished his speech.

"We're bound to meet at Hog's Head next Saturday," explained Luke. "Tom and the other Gryffindors will tell us what're we supposed to do to get into their Army."

"I want to go!" Daisy exclaimed cheerfully.

"I think the four of us will go, right?" Amy asked. I nodded, and Luke grinned triumphantly.

"Great," he said. "I'll tell Tom we're up for it. But just one thing – " He looked at Amy. "You may tell your friends if you want to, but Daisy," he looked at the enthusiastical girl. "You'd better not tell your friends. Tom said having young students in wasn't going to be safe, but I insisted you should come so he made an exception. Your friends shall know nothing about this, okay?"

Daisy looked upset, because she had clearly wanted her other friends to join in. Luke, however, looked concerned.

"Listen, Daisy," he said. "Whatever we do in that group, it's not going to be safe – or legal as for what the school rules say. I thought you'd like to be in, but you must know the risks first." Daisy nodded energetically, telling the older boy she undoubtedly took all the risks. "But I don't want your friends to stick around too. It's going to be serious, advanced magic, Daisy. Do you understand?"

"Of course," the youngest girl in our group answered. "I won't tell Maria and Lynn a thing."

Luke smiled, and ruffled her hair. I saw Amy frowning at this, and I knew both of us were thinking about the same thing. Luke had only insisted about having Daisy in because he wanted to impress Amy, which disgusted her more than anything else. I knew Luke only did it with a good intention, but I sometimes thought he should stop trying to – rather uselessly – impress Amy and just move on.

I saw Luke caught Amy's frown, and my friend decided it would be best to flop onto the couch, next to me.

"What're we going to do now?" Amy asked finally. "I mean, we're about to break a million school rules. What if they catch us?"

"That, no-one knows," I answered truthfully. "But I think it's worth the risk. We don't know what's coming, Amy – after the Ministry 'gas breakout', anything could happen at any moment. Everyone suspects disaster will strike soon, and we have to be prepared."

"These crappy teachers are only making things worse," spat Luke. "I bet the whole bloody Ministry's being manipulated by old Death Eaters or Dark arses. You heard it, they're killing off every worker there who suspects out loud about the new Minister."

I heard Amy sniffling next to me. I knew at once she had been reminded of her dad, and I tried to comfort her by squeezing her hand gently, to which Amy answered with a kind smile.

"All that's left now is training until our hands bleed," she stated with a firm expression.

I was shocked to see soft-spoken, sweet Amy talking like that. Her father's death had changed her, but only then did we realize to what point.

Yet, I knew Amy was right. Once we got involved in Tom's idea, we would have almost daily training, painful wounds to heal after each meeting and fresh and powerful knowledge on charms and general magic. We might get punished or even expelled, yes, but seeing what the school had turned into in a couple of weeks, who knew what would happen over that year? The sooner we started our training, the better prepared we would be to whatever lay ahead of us.

"Amy is right," I finally agreed after a couple of minutes of complete silence. "We have to bleed our hands out at training, because the school – our lives even – might be at stake over the next days."

"But Connor, isn't that a bit too dramatic?" Daisy asked, worry filling her face once again.

I shook my head, "Who knows what's to come? The Ministry's definitely not the same as before, when Harry Potter was still working there. Now, when he casually is working in the States for three years – sweet coincidence, ain't it? – and his whole family is there too, what may stop the Dark forces to try and attack the whole country, just in time to make Harry Potter encounter a devastating mayhem after he returns from the States?"

My three friends looked at me silently. They all knew Harry Potter and his whole family – including his brother-in-law Ron Weasley and his wife and children – were off to the states, where they had all settled down for a period of three years as a Ministry request. Surely, Frevler would make sure no news about Great Britain's current situation, with Hogwarts ruled over three incompetent professors and a new and horrible Minister of Magic, would reach Harry Potter's ears. Most definitely, we had lost the most powerful wizard in our country, leaving all of the United Kingdom almost unprotected.

"I'll tell Jason we're up for it," Luke mused finally.

"I'll tell Bruno and Eleanor, I'm sure they'll want to join in," commented Amy.

"I don't want the Broughton boy in – " started Luke, with a frown in his face.

Amy glared at him, "I'll tell whoever I see fit, and _you_ won't stop me from doing it. And Bruno is top in my year, whether you like it or not. He's Prefect and Quidditch captain – he's perfect to join in!"

Luke grunted, "You're saying all that because you _fancy_ him."

I saw how Amy's cheeks blushed bright red.

"It is none of your business if I fancy Bruno Broughton or not!" she exclaimed, suddenly fiddling with her own tie. "But I tell you, I know he'd make a much better boyfriend than you!"

After Amy's outburst, I saw Luke sat back on the couch, rather taken aback and, why not, tremendously hurt. I didn't say anything, but couldn't help but think Amy was terribly right about her last statement.

"Well," Daisy piped in, trying to cheer us up. "Are we in for the Army or not?"

We finally resolved training ourselves would be the best thing to do. After all, everyone was expecting a new attack any day.

**Nick's POV**

And indeed, the attack came. An attack everyone had been suspecting, but yet no-one dared to mention, fearing it would become true at the moment someone slip their tongue. Until that very morning, that is.

It was a perfectly normal Thursday morning in the Great Hall. Owls dashed over the table and dropped letters, gifts or copies of _The Daily Prophet_. The three of us – Rose, Isabelle and I – were sitting with Bruno. We felt all quite unsure about joining the group Bruno had told us about last evening. I knew Tom and his friends were exceeding wizards and witches, but I still couldn't help but feel we would be in real danger. One of Bruno's closest friends, Jason, had told him about the new Dumbledore's Army, and he had immediatly thought of telling us three. Amy, the girl he fancied – although he would never admit it – had commented it to him too, and had hinted she was going to join in. Bruno hadn't spared a single thought and had told his friends he was up for it, and had ran over to tell us, the only Ravenclaws he could really rely on.

Rose had said she would most definitely participate, but Isabelle and I doubted we would be able to make it into the group.

Bruno's owl, _Hooters_, arrived at our table and gave its owner a copy of The Daily Prophet, to which he was subscribed to. At first, none of us paid much attention to this, but we were surprised by a sudden expression of panic in his face.

"Guys," he whispered, panic-stricken. "Guys, look at this."

We all whirled around him curiously. The first one to gasp was Isabelle, while Rose's eyes widened to impressive widths. I still hadn't seen it because I was sitting in front of Bruno, so I had to walk all the way around the table to see the terrible front page.

_EXPLOSION AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC_

"Flip the page over," Isabelle said urgently, ushering Bruno to read the actual article on the topic.

Our friend flipped the page and we found a page-length article on what had happened in the Ministry. I saw most of the Great Hall had fallen silent, most likely reading the article too.

_Ministry of Magic, London, 2am._

_Over the past night, a violent explosion struck the Department of Magical Regulation, where some studies about sending a group of non-verified Death Eaters to Azkaban were taking place. The night-shift wizards – three men, Callix Norman, Emilian Rifford and Stefano Aleporro, and a woman, Rosmunda Basher – were studying a top-secret list which contained the names of the ten subjects suspected to be related to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's old reign of terror. Around two o'clock in the morning, some explosion – presumed to be related to the pipes' high pressure – devastated the Department, killing the four workers in the act. The workers' bodies have been found and sent to their families. The list with the ten suspected Death Eaters' names has been found, including the following names: Vincent –_

Suddenly, the article's words seemed to disappear from the paper. Everyone in the Great Hall, even some professors, protested at this, and I could also hear muffled cries around the Hufflepuff table. I suddenly remembered there was a girl in my year named Jasmine Norman, who was a Hufflepuff. Worry washed over me – could Jasmine's father be the man who worked at the Department of Magical Regulation?

I looked at Isabelle, who nodded resentfully. Callix Norman – Jasmine's father – had died, just as Rose's mother had died over the first week of the summer. Jasmine was probably sobbing her eyes out, thinking about her Dad, her heartbroken mother, and perhaps about the siblings I ignored she had until then. I looked at her and, in fact, a seventeen-year-old girl and an eleven-year-old boy, all with the same curly blond hair, had joined her at the Hufflepuff table and were crying quietly together.

I then looked at Rose, who seemed to have tears filling her own eyes.

"I'm going to go talk to her," she whispered.

Isabelle, Bruno and I didn't even have time to answer. Our friend dashed off to the Hufflepuff table and started talking to Jasmine and her siblings, probably whispering words of comfort. She knew what they were going through, and I really admired the courage to go and comfort a whole family when no-one had been there for her for the whole summer and she had had to bring up her whole family after her mother's death, being only fourteen years old.

Isabelle and I walked back to our seats and waited for Rose to return. We glanced at each other and nodded, knowing what the other was thinking. The whole Great Hall had fell silent, and suddenly no-one seemed eager to finish their breakfast.

A few minutes later, students started leaving the Great Hall. Jasmine and her siblings had been taken to McGonagall's office by the Headmistress herself, and Rose returned to our table. Bruno, Isabelle and I looked at her with worried expressions, but she quickly shook her head. Then, she turned to Bruno with a firm expression.

"I'm in," she said.

Bruno understood, and he glanced at us, expecting an answer. I looked at Isabelle and she gave me a nod. In that very moment, I knew what we were about to do was the best thing to do in a confused, panic-stricken school with mostly useless professors.

"We're in, too," I said in a strong voice.

Bruno nodded. "I'll tell Jason you guys are coming. First meeting's at Hog's Head on Saturday at eleven o'clock."

The three of us nodded in unison. Said this, Bruno grabbed his books and met Jason, Amy and Eleanor at the Great Hall's doorway, ready to set foot to his first class of the day.

"We'd better get going too," added Isabelle. I knew she was concerned about Rose, but said nothing.

Rose and I nodded. Our first lesson was Transfiguration, so we headed off to the class in silence. None of us wanted to talk, really, and I didn't feel like joking around.

Just as we passed by one of the girls' bathroom, I heard Jasmine's muffled cries coming from inside, and felt my stomach churning in worry.

**Olivia's POV**

We were all sitting in the Slytherin common room when Eleanor and I explained the boys what were the Gryffindors up to. I knew about it because Sara was one of my closest friends and had told me everything, and Eleanor knew it because nagging Jason, Bruno and Amy had told her too. The boys, however, hadn't been informed yet.

"But they're _Gryffindors_," sulked Jack. "They won't want us there."

"Of course they will," I said, surprised. "We might be Slytherins, but Eleanor and I both have our closest friends in Gryffindor. That means nothing."

"Yeah, but that's because they think you guys are nice," Matt retorted. "They must think we're demons or something."

"Matt, they know you two are really good friends of ours," Eleanor said. "They can't think you're demons if you're friends with us."

I eyed Jack carefully. I knew he didn't feel convinced, but at the same time, something in his eyes told me he longed something only the new Dumbledore's Army. I didn't say it out loud, but I instantly knew Jack longed revenge for his mother's death, and what better than a student defiance to the Ministry to do it?

"I still don't think it's a good idea," said Matt. "Of course, you two should join in, you've friends there anyway. But what about Jack and I? We've no friends outside from Slytherin. Even if they don't think we're demons, they still won't like us."

"Just give it a try!" I insisted. "I know most of them will like you. They're our friends, they trust us when we say you two are nice lad."

I bit my lip, because I knew that last statement wasn't true. Although my friends did know Matt and Jack were way nicer than other Slytherins, they still thought we were better off hanging out with someone else. But Eleanor and I thought they would approve Jack and Matt's presence once they saw they were really nice people. I knew Matt was rather hard core and it took a while to get to know how he really was – I myself had spent my first two years at Hogwarts hating the living guts out of him – but then, once you gain his trust, he can be the best of friends. And Jack, well, Jack was a really nice boy, but he was sometimes too obsessed with being the best in everything, too perfectionist and somewhat selfish, but only a teensy little bit.

"Ellie," I whispered to my best friend while two boys discussed what would they be doing, "Do you think this is a good idea?"

"Positive," Eleanor answered. "I'm sure they'll end up liking each other."

I nodded in agreement, and both of us turned to our straight-faced friends.

"We've thought," started Jack. "That we may go to the Hog's Head meeting tomorrow."

"But that doesn't mean we'll be in for sure," added Matt quickly. "We'll have to think about it."

I grinned at Eleanor, who gave me a high-five.

"You won't regret it, boys," I promised them.

When my eyes met Matt's, I gave him a huge smile, but my friend only looked away sheepishly.

"So that's it," Eleanor said triumphantly. "We're done with this small meeting." She looked at her watch and her eyes widened. "Oh, my! I have Potions in five minutes." She gave me a small hug and waved at the boys. "See you later!"

We said goodbye to her and watched as Eleanor left. Then, Jack stood up and waved us goodbye too.

"I have Care of Magical Creatures," he informed us. "I'll be back for next period, Matt."

"'Kay, fine," he said, waving goodbye to his friend. "See you later."

And so Matt and I were left alone in the Slytherin common room, only with a couple of other seventh years sitting next to the fire. Matt seemed to shift in his chair, rather awkwardly.

"Um – so how's your grandpa?" I asked casually, trying not to sound too awkward.

"Erm – fine, I guess," he answered. "How's your family?"

"Oh well, my little brother Carter started at Hogwarts this year," I answered brightly, proud of my little brother. "He's been placed in Ravenclaw. My other brother, Mason, has started his fourth year. He's a Hufflepuff, by the way."

"I know Mason's a Hufflepuff," Matt grunted. "He spent the whole last year bothering me whenever he saw me, because he thought you were my girlfriend."

I blushed bright red at Matt's comment. Had my younger brother really thought Matt and I were dating? Neither of them had ever mentioned those weird encounters until then, which seemed more than odd to me.

"Oh, really?" I asked, trying to keep a casual tone. "Why should my brother ever think that?"

"Perhaps because I've been like your best boy friend ever since Year 3?" Matt hinted sarcastically.

I was surprised to see the corners of his lips had curled into a smile.

"Hm, that's not enough," I laughed.

"Perhaps because I am the most charming young man you've ever met?" he suggested.

I giggled at his words, but said nothing. Truth be told, Matt _was_ quite the charmer. He had many girls stalking him, but he never even bothered to look at them. Some of them were really beautiful – gorgeous, even – and still Matt hadn't dated any of them once. Now that I came to thinking about it, I thought Matt had never had a girlfriend, or at least anything else than a weekly fling. I suddenly felt a pinch of jealousy, thinking about all those girls who had kissed him, although I was pretty sure he remembered none of their names. Everyone thought Matt wasn't made for a romantic, stable relationship, but I only thought he hadn't found the appropiate person yet.

A few hours later, as I slipped into bed that night, a thought struck me.

Could I be falling for Matt?

...

**Author's Note**: Ouch. Sorry for that terribly sappy ending, but I couldn't come up with anything else. I hope everything was all right with all your OC's and I hope the start of the new Army wasn't too rushed.

Also, I need you to guys to **tell me your OC's pets**. This is really important because if I don't have them by the time I finish typing next chapter I'll just make them up. So, you'll just have to spare a couple of minutes: give me name for the pet, species (owl, cat, toad, bunny, micropuff...) colour of their fur/feathers in the case of owls, and magical abilities (this one's not necessary for owls).

So said this, next chapter will come soon!

Maya x


	6. Chapter Five: Hog's Head

**Chapter Five: Hog's Head**

_Spies ~ Coldplay_

...

**Jason's POV**

The rest of the week seemed to rush by and, by Saturday morning, a small group of fifteen and sixteen year olds was walking down the path towards Hogsmeade, trying to seem perfectly casual. We had split up in groups just in case professors suspected of us, and I had joined my friends Bruno, Amy, Louis, Eleanor, Sara, Olivia and Tom on a nice walk to the Wizarding village. Daisy and Pandora were coming not far behind from us, and Luke and Connor had said they would meet us at Hog's Head. The three fourth years, Nick, Isabelle and Rose, were going to Honeydukes first, whilst the two seventh years from Slytherin – whom none of us aside from Eleanor and Olivia really trusted – said they needed to go to Galdrags Wizardwear before our meeting.

"I bet they're gonna call their Death Eater daddies and tell them what's up with us," I snorted as I saw them walking away from our group.

Eleanor seemed to glare at me, "You're such an arsehole. They're the nicest Slytherins you'll ever find."

"That Matt," I mumbled. "I don't like him. He seems too...cool. I – I don't like how he thinks he's the best in everything. I bet he's going to call his daddy and tell him to get us all expelled."

Almost instantly, Eleanor and Olivia froze in the spot. The rest of us wheeled around and looked at them, surprised. Bruno and Tom had even chuckled at my comment, but when I saw the look in Olivia's eyes I realized I had said something they hadn't liked very much.

"What?" I asked, rolling my eyes. "It's true."

"Jason," Olivia whispered. "Matt lost his whole family when he was seven years old."

"And you're just an annoying, stupid toerag who can't think about anyone but yourself!" roared Eleanor. "Matt has feelings, you know, and so do the rest of us!"

I stared at the two girls quietly. I had no idea about Matt's family, and for the first time guilt washed over me. I felt sure I would have been just as hardcore as Matt was if I had lost my family at the age of seven. I didn't know what to say, so I just ducked my head and stared at my shoes.

"I'm sorry," I finally mumbled. "I'd no idea."

Olivia seemed to give me a comforting smile and squeezed my shoulder gently.

"It's okay," she whispered. "Just try and be nice to them, all right? They're both great guys."

I nodded slowly. I saw Bruno, Amy, Tom, Louis and Sara standing there in awe, not really being able to say anything. We stood there in an awkward silence, with Eleanor still glaring at me, until Tom cleared his throat.

"Um, guys – it's half past ten already," he announced. "Meeting's in half an hour. We'd better hurry if we want to get there in time."

The rest of us nodded and started walking again. Sara and Tom had started one of their very casual conversations, and I heard Sara's giggles and Tom's soft chuckles from time to time. I saw Amy and Bruno had slowly taken Eleanor into the conversation, the girl with the long brown hair forgetting about me completely. Olivia walked in silence, observing the bright-green leaves in the trees. I walked in silence too until I heard someone pacing up to me.

"Hey, Jas," Louis called me.

I turned and saw my friend's curly blond hair, and smiled.

"You pretty much messed up all your chances with Eleanor, right?" he asked in a funny tone.

I rose my eyebrows at him.

"What do you mean, _messed up my chances_?" I asked.

Louis laughed, "Come on. It's pretty obvious you fancy her."

My eyes widened, and my first reaction was a big, loud laugh. "Me? Fancying _her_? You're sick, Lou! I mean – she's a Slytherin!"

"And one of the nicest Slytherins I've ever known, if you ask me," he told me wisely.

I did a sigh. Yeah, I had to admit I did like Eleanor just a teensy little bit. She might have been a Slytherin, but she was one of the nicest persons to be around with. If your name's not Jason Poole, that is. I've had a feud going on with her ever since we met in the Hogwarts Express four years ago, and I believed she had hated me ever since.

"It doesn't matter if I fancy her," I said sulkily. "She hates the living guts out of me."

Louis shrugged, "Well, you can always change that, can't you?"

I eyed him suspiciously, eyebrows rosen in surprise, "How?"

Louis gave me a sly smile, "We'll have to find out."

**Rose's POV**

Honeydukes was Nick's paradise. He could spend there hours, days – _years_, and never get tired of those sweet, enchanted candies. As Isabelle and I dragged him out of the store, carrying a small bag of candy each, we realized Nick carried a bag three times bigger than both of our bags together. He opened it and we found it was crammed with Bertie Bott's All-Flavoured Beans, Cauldron Cakes, Chocolate Frogs and a gazillion more candy. Isabelle let out a loud laugh.

"Your teeth are going to rot, Nick," she told him.

"It'll be worth it," Nick said dreamily, staring into his bag and taking a Bertie Bott's box out. He opened it and popped a pink one into his mouth. He grinned. "Hm, strawberry marmalade. Do you guys want one?"

Both Isabelle and I shook our heads. Nick shrugged and took an amber coloured one, but quickly spat it out.

"Eugh, earwax!" He mumbled, seeming disgusted. A split of a second later, he popped a black one into his mouth and smiled goofily. "Oh, dear Merlin... blackcurrant."

"He's no remedy," Isabelle snorted. Then, she turned around and looked at me. "It's almost eleven! Let's go!"

The three of us hurried down the crowded Hogsmeade streets, Nick's candy bag often hitting passer-byes. Isabelle and I occasionally scolded him for being such a glutton, but we both knew we enjoyed seeing our friend smiling like a five-year-old every time he opened a Chocolate Frog box.

We finally arrived to Hog's Head about five minutes to eleven. I peered through one of the small windows and saw Tom and the older kids were most inside. My stomach seemed to do a weird churn when I saw a sprout of blond, curly hair, and I smiled giddily as I realized it was Louis Curdy, that Gryffindor fifth year who had also lost his father in the Ministry accident. He looked so handsome...

I quickly shook my head and gave some sort of weird snort. Had I just thought a guy was _handsome_? That was so unlike me. I mean – I had never thought a guy was handsome – or attractive in a romantic way at all, for that matter – and why should Louis be an exception? We had never really talked...well, my cousin Bruno was a close friend of his, and the three of us had held a sort of awkward conversation at the Ministry after the small ceremony held for the deceased Aurors. But I was pretty sure he didn't even remember my name.

Just as I pondered if I really found Louis Curdy handsome, I saw a big pair of blue eyes meeting mine. I quickly realized it was none other than Louis who was sort of _staring_ at me, so I quickly looked away.

Isabelle and Nick were looking at me curiously, so I walked up to them. I heard Nick stifling a laugh, while Isabelle nudged him on the ribs.

"What's wrong?" I asked curiously, peering at them.

"You're all blushed," giggled Nick then.

I felt how the blush in my face deepened at my friend's comment.

"I – of course I'm not – Why should I – ?" I stuttered. I quickly shook my head. "Anyway, they're inside. Most of them, I mean – like, there's still some of them missing –"

"We get it, Rose," Isabelle laughed. "Let's get moving."

I nodded, and followed my friends to the entrance. I suddenly felt ecstatic about seeing Louis again – perhaps talk to him after the meeting, comment what the Army's going to consist of...a split of a second later I felt like slapping myself, but couldn't because Isabelle had cracked the door open and we found ourselves face-to-face with the other students.

As Louis flashed a timid smile at me, my stomach seemed to twist and shout in pure joy.

**Amy's POV**

Once all seventeen of us were there – Connor and Luke arrived soon after the fourth year Ravenclaws and the others followed them in a matter of seconds – everyone seemed rather nervous. After all, we were doing something illegal at school – we were planning a student organization which planned to instruct each other in their own methods and ignoring our professors' classes. But the seventeen of us were there because we _wanted_ to do it, so I thought it was all perfectly clear when Tom stood up and walked to the front of the room awkwardly, with Sara and Tom to his sides.

"Well..." he started. "I guess all of you know why're you here. We're – we're facing a bad situation at school. Our new professors don't want to teach us real, defensive magic – and we suspect it's because the Ministry's up to something."

"It's not a suspicion," groaned one of the older Slytherins, Matthew Ebornheart. "They are definitely up to something."

"And that's why we've thought of this," said Sara. "I'm sure all of you know what Harry Potter and some fellow students did over the 1995-1996 year, right?" We all shook our heads, almost in unison. "So we've decided we're going to do some sort of the same thing. We'll meet at the Room of Requirement at a given day and hour, and we will learn charms, hexes and jinxes which might come in handy for self defense. You'll also learn Dueling tactics and we'll share knowledge and tips with each other."

"And why are we doing this, in any case?" asked Luke behind me. "I mean – I know we're not learning a damn thing in class, and I know the Ministry's been rather weird over the last months. But what are we to do, even if the school is hit by an attack or something?"

"We have to be prepared," explained Jason. "And we'll have to form a real group that will always be attached to the Light, not the Dark. If battle strikes again, just as it did thirty-five years ago, we shall be prepared to battle whatever comes."

Everyone whispered, half-excited, half-worried. I glanced at Eleanor, who gave me a small nod, and then at Bruno, who nodded and mouthed, 'Best idea'.

"So," concluded Tom. "All of you who want to join in may sign up over here," he signaled to Louis, who was preparing a piece of parchment, a bottle of black ink and a quill in one of the small tables. "And we'll tell you what you're ought to do for the Army. Those of you who are not interested may leave already, but we must ask you to please remain quiet about this. If professors ever found out, we would most certainly get into the worst kind of trouble."

It wasn't surprising to see no-one walked out of the room. Instead, a small queue was formed over the piece of parchment. The first ones to get their hands on it were Nick and Isabelle, who were whispering excitedly. They were followed by Eleanor and Olivia. Bruno came after them, and I signed Daisy, Pandora and I after. Luke and Connor glanced at each other and quickly walked over to sign up too. Rose doubted at first, but finally scribbled her name in the piece of parchment. Matt, despite doubting a little at first, received an encouraging smile from Olivia and finally decided to write his name down.

We all looked at each other grinning, happy that we were all in the group. But then, Pandora said something that left us stunned.

"Jack hasn't signed up yet."

**Jack's POV**

When everyone turned around and seemed to stare at me with pure disgust, I felt rather taken aback. Of course, they all thought I was just a nasty Slytherin and that all I wanted was to surfeit my wishes of ambition and glory. Not at all. I didn't give a damn about Death Eaters or a new war breaking out, I just wanted to avenge my mother's death.

"I was just wondering," I said quietly. "Who would be the leader of the Army."

Everyone looked surprised at my question, whereas I found it completely normal. I stood straight-faced until someone spoke up.

"We haven't thought of that," cleared the Gryffindor fifth year, I believe his name was Louis or Lewis or Leon or something. "The organization was founded by members of the Gryffindor house, but of course all house will have equal treatment." He then turned to the rest of the group and spoke to them again. "Well, as for the coins, Sara will charm any galleon you have in your pocket –"

But I cut him before he could finish his sentence. "I think we should have a leader."

Again, everyone looked at me, startled. It was Sara who spoke up then.

"I guess Tom could be," she told us. "After all, he's been the real founder of the Army – and he's one of the best Duelists at school, if not the best."

I scoffed. "We'll see that."

And with nothing else, I walked over to the list and scribbled my name into it. I then gave my now fellow Army members a cheeky smile, and when my eyes met Tom, I sent him a defying glare, to which he responded by informing the others on how to find the Room of Requirement, and suggesting them to always practice what they learned at the meetings even if meetings weren't scheduled for a long period of time. I just rolled my eyes and looked at him with the defying glare still visible in my eyes. Halfway through his speech, I felt Matt nudging me hard.

"Are you serious, man?" he asked.

I snorted, "'Course I am. I don't think that Bates boy'll make a good leader – but we'll sort that out later. For the time being, I have to show everyone how talented I am."

For I second, I felt like Matt sort of glared at me, but then my best friend turned around, back to paying Tom some attention. After a few seconds, I thought I heard him mumble something.

"Let's just hope you don't screw it up, Jackie."

...

**Author's Note**: Well, that was chapter five! Hm...not much to say. Oh well, sorry for making Jack so cheeky, but I wanted to stir up some drama. I promise he'll change as the story goes on. Also, I still need Rose's pet – it's the only pet I'm missing, so thank you very much to everyone who's been kind enough to send me their OC's pets :)

So, next chapter will come up soon! Until then,

Maya x


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